The symbiotic relationship between hardware and software in the gaming industry often plays a key role in a given game console's success. Cutting-edge game software often needs correspondingly advanced hardware in order to provide the highest quality gaming experience. One example of this dependency relates to tracking player movements to enhance game play. Generally, this involves providing sufficient hardware to track a player's movements via a handheld controller pad and using the data for game software to display changes in position during game play.
Conventional game controller tracking schemes generally involve two-dimensional side-to-side or up-and-down movement monitoring. These solutions generally rely on motion detection and report locations relative to a reference point. Other schemes involve complex optical systems to track player positions. While conventional position tracking schemes work well for their intended applications, the need exists for cost-effective and accurate three-dimensional tracking methods to include, for example, the proximity of a controller with respect to the console in terms of absolute location. Embodiments of such systems and methods described herein satisfy these needs.